Car transport cost from Kolkata: rates, carriers and what to check

Car carrier pricing depends on distance, vehicle size and whether the carrier is open or enclosed. A hatchback costs less than a sedan, which costs less than a full-size SUV, and an enclosed carrier adds roughly 15% to 25% over an open one.

As a working guide from Kolkata: Bhubaneswar ₹6,000 to ₹10,000, Ranchi ₹7,000 to ₹11,000, Hyderabad ₹12,000 to ₹18,000, Bengaluru ₹14,000 to ₹22,000, Pune ₹15,000 to ₹23,000, Mumbai ₹16,000 to ₹24,000, and Delhi NCR ₹13,000 to ₹20,000.

Door-to-door pickup and delivery adds a little over terminal-to-terminal, and it is worth it. A carrier that cannot enter your lane will otherwise ask you to drive to a highway meeting point at an inconvenient hour.

An open multi-car carrier is the standard choice and it is perfectly safe for ordinary daily-drive cars; the exposure is dust and weather, not damage. An enclosed carrier is the right call for premium, imported, low-clearance or freshly painted vehicles, and during heavy monsoon months on the eastern coastal route.

Never allow your car to be driven to its destination to save money. Driven transfer puts hundreds of kilometres on your odometer, burns your fuel, and voids most transit insurance cover the moment the wheels turn under their own power.

Empty the car of personal belongings; insurance does not cover loose items inside the vehicle. Leave fuel at roughly a quarter tank — enough to load and unload, light enough not to add weight. Photograph all four corners, the roof and the odometer on your phone the moment before loading.

Hand over one key, disable the alarm or share the procedure, and remove the FASTag or any toll device if you want to avoid stray deductions. Then check that the condition report the driver fills in matches your photographs before you sign it — that signed report is your claim if anything goes wrong.